Search

If you’re like me and you are always hungry for more news about Sudan and constantly crave different views and news on Sudan, then be sure to check out the Reuters AlertNet list.

I am very thankful and humbled that Reuters included my blog as one of the best websites discussing Sudanese issues. I encourage my readers to check out every single other link on the list because they all offer great insights and news about Sudan that you will not find in mainstream media.

Here is the full Reuters AlertNet list of links and a little bit of information on what each one is about:

Lately, I have been forced to tune out the world’s news and current affairs because I am inundated by my own matters that I must tend to. There is only one week left till finals start, and all my projects/presentations are due this week. Being the notorious procrastinator that I am, I always wait till the 11th hour to do anything—this blog post was supposed to be written days ago. I have also been extremely busy with my part-time job and two major end-of-semester events for some of the student organizations I am a member of.

Now that you are up to speed with what’s been preoccupying me, I would like to apologize for the half-assed posts on this blog as of late, but I do have good news and bad news. The good news is: you should expect many more of these half-assed posts until I am finished with finals. That was also the bad news. While I use my intellect for last minute cramming and sucking up to professors, I think you should take time to appreciate your mind while laughing at intellectually inferior people on facebook who engage in meaningful conversations such as this one, and thank God that you are not a nincompoop—no really, that’s a word!

I have many plans for this blog; the best is yet to come. So fear not blog readers, this well has not dried up yet. This blogging well is Zamzam-esque. Speaking of Zamzam, Eid Mubarak to all!

I have a confession: through a convoluted turn of events, I might have something to do with the recent Indian terrorist attacks! (Dear FBI: my middle name is “kidding,” please disregard the confession on this blog, you have more important things to do anyway.)

Well, I’ll tell you what happened, and you be the judge of my connection, either way, I do believe it to be incredibly ironic. So this morning, as I was getting ready to head out to work, I was thinking: “why do most people mistake me for an Indian?” When I was first told I looked Indian, I was surprised to be honest. I did not think I looked Indian at all. Even though I still hold that view, I do see where people are coming from. In the States, I get asked if I am Indian 90% of the time, a lot of the time by Indians. The other 10%, I have been mistaken for Dominican, Brazilian, Polynesian, and the really sharp self-described “worldly” ones just point out that I am probably North African. So I said to myself: Self, you know it is actually better to be mistaken for an Indian, because then all the subsequent conversations will revolve around people’s proclamation of their love for Chutney, questions about Cricket, or if it gets really intense, they will want to discuss their friend Sanji’s arranged marriage, and inquire about whether or not my family is forcing me to marry “that Indian doctor.”

This I thought, was a lot easier than saying that I am Sudanese and getting either one of two looks: The “Aww I’m sorry” look, which usually comes from people who are generally sorry anyone has to be from Africa, or the Arab world (or lo and behold, an Arab country in Africa!) They then take liberty in divulging their views on the Darfur “genocide,” terrorism, that Arab restaurant they tried the other day, and how they would have never guessed I am Sudanese, because I look Indian. The other look comes from people who take it upon themselves to hate anyone who is not a disenfranchised African. Its more of the “you have no right to have that Gucci bag and enjoy life, while your people kill Darfurian babies, you Arab Sudanese murderer, you” look. That look I generally ignore, because it usually comes from the “omg, Africa is not a country?” crowd.

Anyway, I kept thinking about this while driving to work, and decided that from now on, if someone decides I am Indian, then so be it, because I am sick of discussing the politics of my country and neighboring train wrecks. I decided that some days, it’s just easier to discuss the deliciousness that is Masala and why I worship cows. That’s until, two hours later, India was all over the news for terrorism. Damn. No more “are you going to wear that red dot on your forehead” conversations. I am afraid I jinxed India!

You know how some blogging newbies start their About Me sections by lamely declaring that they are newbies? No? Okay well I was going to make fun of them—making fun of people being the main theme of this blog—and then go on to un-lamely declare that, granted I am a newbie, I will rock at this. Now, for a little random trivia about me…hmmm this is not as easy as it seems… internet users became so damn sophisticated (and stuff, like OMG) so maybe I should just pretend this is the Stone Internet Age and people still ask simple questions like: a/s/l, to which I will immediately answer: 12/f/Chris Hansen’s kitchen. Now I know you’re going to deny ever asking such a question (or answering it truthfully for that matter) so I am just going to tell you the truth and nothing but the truth so help me God:I am 21, living on Earth, but earthlings require me to say I am Sudanese– given my ancestors’ mating choices and a few silly men with permanent markers and a map of the world, who decided that a few hundred tribes should be one country. Now back to the subject of identifying myself (I am surprised you are still reading this, flattered, but surprised nonetheless.) In all actuality, I am a proud Sudanese girl, who is currently pursuing a degree in… (Brain just a gave me a nudge to stop giving too much personal info, so the fact that I am a business major shall remain confidential) I consider myself an intellectual, half of the time at least, the other time being spent as a supercilious pedant (like the time I referred to myself as a supercilious pedant on my blog.) This blog is about random thoughts that I often feel compelled to expel from my brain because they taint my other “normal” thoughts. I thought other people might enjoy my thoughts, or the byproducts of my questionable cranial abilities, and not enough sleep.

Who am I?

I am a Sudanese optimist and a marketing professional with a passion for philanthropy. Yes, you guessed correctly, I love paradoxes. This blog is a literary melting pot of all the diverse ideas that I can cognitively recall and write down-- I promise I will not be biased against any of those ideas, even when they sound like Sarah Palin's verbal diarrhea, circa 2008 elections. In this blog, no topic is off limits.It must be noted that I fancy sarcasm, irony, and controversy. Buckle down and enjoy the ride to controversy town!